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GAME 7 and Centric Brands Partner to Launch GAME 7 Apparel Line Available Exclusively …

Published

1 week ago

April 21, 2025

GAME 7 and Centric Brands Partner to Launch GAME 7 Apparel Line Available Exclusively ...

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–GAME 7, the multi-platform sports and entertainment brand, announces the launch of its first apparel line in partnership with Centric Brands LLC, and the new and style-driven sports team apparel collection will be available to consumers exclusively in the U.S. Amazon GAME 7 brand store beginning today. The partnership infuses the DNA of GAME 7’s high-performance ethos into Centric Brands’ vast design, merchandising, sales, sourcing and marketing expertise. The collection’s first drop introduces GAME 7 apparel’s new licensing deal with the NBA—setting the stage for future expansion into additional professional and collegiate leagues.

This one-of-a-kind collaboration represents a strategic move to bring GAME 7’s bold, sports-driven style to a wider audience and expand its reach within the world of lifestyle and athletic-inspired apparel.

@GAME7 on Instagram.

About GAME 7

GAME 7 is a multi-sports and entertainment brand underscoring the journey to success through content, community, experiences and consumer products inspired by the hunger needed to succeed in life’s pivotal game 7-like moments. Co-founded by Mark Messier, Danny DeVito, Issac Chera and Mat Vlasic, GAME 7 aims to inspire all to rise to high-stake challenges for the opportunity of greatness. GAME 7 recently launched its five-part anthology series titled GAME 7, on Amazon Prime Video, which unpacks and showcases the most iconic game 7 moments in sports history.

About Centric Brands LLC

Centric Brands LLC is a global leading lifestyle brand collective that has unparalleled expertise in product design, development and sourcing, retail and digital commerce, marketing, and brand building. Centric designs, sources, markets, and sells high-quality products in the kids, men’s and women’s apparel, accessories, beauty, and entertainment categories. The Company’s portfolio includes licenses for more than 100 iconic brands, including Airwalk®, Calvin Klein®, Tommy Hilfiger®, Nautica®, and Under Armour® in the kid’s category; Buffalo®, Faherty®, Hervé Léger®, IZOD® and Joe’s Jeans® in the men’s and women’s apparel category; All Saints®, Coach®, Frye®, Hunter®, Kate Spade®, Michael Kors®, and Vince® in the accessories category; and in the Sports & Entertainment category, Disney®, Marvel®, Messi®, Nickelodeon®, and Warner Brothers® among many others. The Company also owns and operates Avirex®, Fiorelli®, Hudson®, Robert Graham®, and Taste Beauty® and operates joint venture brands, Favorite Daughter, Jennifer Fisher, and Preston Lane. The Company’s products are sold through leading mass-market retailers, specialty and department stores, and online. The Company is headquartered in New York City, with U.S. offices in Los Angeles and Greensboro, and international offices in Asia, Europe, Montreal, and Toronto. Centric Brands social impact efforts are centered around our commitment to serve and uplift the communities where we live and do business. Through our collective volunteerism and contributions, we are dedicated to making a caring and lasting impact on the world around us.

For more information about Centric Brands, please visit www.centricbrands.com.

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Mountaineers Fall to Marshall in Charleston

Next Game: Texas Tech 5/2/2025 | 6:30 p.m. May. 02 (Fri) / 6:30 p.m. Texas Tech CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The No. 16 West Virginia University baseball team fell to Marshall, 7-6, Wednesday evening at GoMart Ballpark. The Mountaineers drop to 37-6 while the Thundering Herd improve to 24-22. Senior […]

Published

43 minutes ago

May 1, 2025

Your Sports Nation

CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The No. 16 West Virginia University baseball team fell to Marshall, 7-6, Wednesday evening at GoMart Ballpark. The Mountaineers drop to 37-6 while the Thundering Herd improve to 24-22.

Senior Kyle West went 3-for-4 with a double, home run and two RBI. Juniors Skylar King and Sam White each had two hits on the night as well.

The Mountaineers took an early lead with two runs in the first on a double from West and a Herd error. Marshall got one run back in the home half of the inning with a solo home run.

White hit an RBI double in the third to push the lead to 3-1, but Marshall responded in the fourth with three runs to jump in front. West then hit a solo home run in the fifth to even up the game once again.

Senior Grant Hussey had an RBI single in the sixth to put WVU on top before senior Brodie Kresser drove in a run with a groundout. The lead did not last long as Marshall scored two in the bottom of the inning to tie the game at six after six.

Juniors Carson Estridge and Ben McDougal both posted scoreless outings on the mound to get to the ninth still tied. With two runners and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Marshall brought home the winning run on a Mountaineer error.

The Mountaineers return to Big 12 play this weekend against Texas Tech at Kendrick Family Ballpark. First pitch on Friday is set for 6:30 p.m.

For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

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SBJ Live recap

If you have seen new facilities pop up in your area where people can recreationally play pickleball, golf, soccer, basketball or more, you are likely witnessing Social Sports marketing in play. What are Social Sports? “Social Sports are organized group-based board experiences that really focus on community building and community connections in addition to of […]

Published

9 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

If you have seen new facilities pop up in your area where people can recreationally play pickleball, golf, soccer, basketball or more, you are likely witnessing Social Sports marketing in play.

What are Social Sports?

“Social Sports are organized group-based board experiences that really focus on community building and community connections in addition to of course the competition that you find in sports” Break Sports Founder Trisha Goyal said.

Goyal joined Unrivaled Commissioner Micky Lawler and Open Venture Capital Founder & Managing Partner Kim Nixon in Wednesday’s SBJ Live session, “Engaging Consumers Through Social Sports: A New Brand Strategy,” moderated by SBJ’s Dan Kaufman.

Here are three takeaways from the session:

Exploring new avenues

While many athletic activities the common person may participate in have traditionally been purely exercise-based, Nixon said that casual consumers are also becoming drawn to organized, competitive sports.

“We’re seeing a transition from Social Fitness into Social Sport,” Nixon explained. “That’s because there’s more access to sport post your collegiate years.”

Goyal pointed to how professional sports can influence Social Sports participation.

“Pro Sports is one of the things that really inspires people to want to even get into a Social Sport organized activity,” Goyal said.

Lawler shared her own experience managing a three-on-three basketball league, and how that can present basketball in a more inviting way, particularly to women.

“Three-on-three lends itself to create much more spacing [on the court] and deliver a better product,” Lawler said. “This is a way to present basketball excellence.”

She added that women “had to be part of a high school team or a church league or another social league” to play basketball, but Unrivaled has helped invite a more casual style of play for women.

Meeting consumers where they are

Goyal noted how Social Sports can be advantageous for brands looking to connect with consumers.

“There’s already a rise in general in sports and investment in sports paired with also a rise and investment in experiential marketing and in person marketing,” Goyal said. “Social Sports kind of sit at that intersection that enables brands to reach real consumers in meaningful more deeper ways than just digital advertising.”

Adding accessibility

While the subject of DEI has been a hot button topic lately, Nixon believes the “I” in the acronym — Inclusion — can be a central piece in how amateurs participate in sports.

“That ‘I’ has grown to include having conversations about differing abilities and access to sport in school,” Nixon said. “There are a couple of great startups that I’ve had conversations with that are focused on making sure that there’s more opportunity for fitness and sport for disabled children at school.”

Goyal added to this point, saying, “Social Sports is really great for those who have a disability or an impairment. … Pickleball has been one that we have seen a pick-up with.”

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UConn’s Alex Karaban set to return for senior year: ‘My heart remains in Storrs’

John Fanta College Basketball Broadcaster and Reporter Two-time national champion Alex Karaban wants one more shot at reaching the mountaintop in Storrs. The UConn star announced Tuesday morning that he is running it back for his senior season, a rare situation in modern-day college basketball for a player to stay at his school for all […]

Published

15 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

John Fanta

College Basketball Broadcaster and Reporter

Two-time national champion Alex Karaban wants one more shot at reaching the mountaintop in Storrs.

The UConn star announced Tuesday morning that he is running it back for his senior season, a rare situation in modern-day college basketball for a player to stay at his school for all four years of his career.

Connecticut head coach Dan Hurley has always said Karaban is the perfect fit for his program, so if there was a guy to make this move, the 6-foot-8 Massachusetts native is the poster boy for it. Averaging 14.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this past year, Karaban earned second-team All-Big East honors. This return is a sign of the benefits of NIL, with Karaban being able to earn seven figures during his senior year of college, as opposed to going the pro route where he would likely be in the G League next season.

This is massive news for UConn, which will be a top-10 team in my FOX Sports Preseason Top 25 rankings. The Huskies return Solo Ball, Tarris Reed and Jaylen Stewart, while also ushering in the nation’s ninth-ranked recruiting class, headlined by Georgia transfer Silas Demary and five-star guard Braylon Mullins.

Karaban will look to capitalize on some unfinished business after the Huskies fell in the first weekend of this past year’s NCAA Tournament and were knocked out in the Big East Tournament semifinals.

“I pride myself on accepting challenges and holding myself to the highest standard,” Karaban said in a social media post. “Last year, we didn’t achieve what we set out to, and I am not running from a chance to make that right. After deliberating the last few weeks with my coaches and family about my future, I’ve realized that my heart remains in Storrs, and I have unfinished business to chase another national championship with my brothers.”

Hurley also announced the addition of former Villanova interim head coach and assistant Mike Nardi to his staff. Nardi, who was a four-year starter at Villanova from 2003-07, spent the last decade on the Main Line and was a part of Jay Wright’s dynasty with national championships in 2016 and 2018. After Kevin Willard did not retain Nardi, who served as interim after Kyle Neptune was fired and led Villanova to the College Basketball Crown semifinals, Nardi was looking for a new spot. The timing worked perfectly with UConn legend Tom Moore moving to the general manager chair in Storrs, opening the door for Hurley to hire a top-tier assistant who adds to Connecticut’s championship pedigree.

The bricks are being laid in Storrs for a reload in 2025-26 and UConn looks more than poised to go at St. John’s for the top spot in the Big East. Expect that rivalry to only keep intensifying next season.

John Fanta is a national college basketball broadcaster and writer for FOX Sports. He covers the sport in a variety of capacities, from calling games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Network to providing commentary on The Field of 68 Media Network. Follow him at @John_Fanta.

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NBA Draft Early Entrants Drop Amid NIL Boom and End of COVID Waivers

Today, the NBA released its official list of early entrants to the draft — players who still have collegiate eligibility but are testing the waters of professional basketball. The numbers confirm what many have suspected: NIL deals have changed the calculus for top college players. Instead of chasing second-round draft spots and two-way contracts, many […]

Published

16 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Only 106 athletes filed as early entrants this year — the lowest number since 2015. This year’s class is a dramatic reduction from last year’s 174 early entrants. However, there is crucial context to interpreting this data.

While the decrease in early entrants follows the longstanding trend of bucking professional opportunities for NIL, COVID waivers that granted every athlete who played in the 2020-21 season an extra year of eligibility have boosted early entrant numbers over the last several years.

Last year, 55 of the 174 early entrants held an extra year of NCAA eligibility stemming from the waiver-eligible season. This year, that number has plummeted. Just five early entrants played in the NCAA during the 2020–21 season, indicating that college basketball is aging out of the COVID waiver era.

Last summer, I researched how this was already reshaping NBA draft trends. Here’s a graphic showing the impact of COVID eligibility on early entrant rates:

2016: NCAA changed rules allowing players to enter the NBA draft without forfeiting collegiate eligibility

2020: Global pandemic gave every athlete an extra year of eligibility

2021: NIL & Transfer Portal introduced: created a proxy-free agency and salaries for college players pic.twitter.com/eshIgyDIFH

— Noah Henderson (@NoahImgLikeness) May 7, 2024

Again, COVID waivers are only one factor in declining early entrant rates. With several concepts of professionalization making their way to collegiate basketball, athletes are earning more than ever, and depending on your draft positioning, some players stand to earn more in college than the NBA.

For athletes who are certain to end up as first-round draft picks, it is likely wise to accept the opportunity to play in the NBA. Even pick number 30 in the NBA draft receives a fully guaranteed two-year contract with compensation roughly equal to or beyond the highest NIL compensation figures.

In the 2025 NBA draft class, pick 14 will earn over $10 million in guaranteed salary over his first two seasons. For many, staying in college can also mean improving one’s future draft stock. The difference in salary between pick number 20 and pick number 4 in this year’s draft comes out to $13 million in guaranteed money over two years.

With a lower opportunity cost of playing in the new landscape of NCAA basketball, this is a tempting offer even for some first-round picks who want to bet on themselves. Of course, regression and injury in college make this a risky proposition.

Leaving college without exhausting all NCAA eligibility also allows NBA players to earn extensions and get off the NBA rookie scale quicker, increasing their earning power in the league at a younger age.

The decision to leave early for the draft looks very different for players projected in the second round. Unlike first-round picks, second-rounders are not entitled to guaranteed contracts, and the financial gap between what they’re likely to earn in the NBA and what they could command in college is substantial. For many, staying in school offers more security, more money, and a clearer path forward than navigating the uncertainty of a non-guaranteed NBA deal.

While the rookie minimum salary is $1.27 million, most second-rounders don’t receive fully guaranteed contracts, and many end up on two-way deals worth just $636,435.These figures likely short-change early entrants compared to what they could make on the open college market.

Last year, Coleman Hawkins (Kansas State) and Great Osobor (Washington) broke records by inking deals reported at $2,000,000 to compete for their respective institutions. Now, in light of presumptive institutional revenue sharing and a competitive transfer market, those numbers are becoming more and more common – most recently, reigning Mountain West player of the year Donovan Dent was reported to have signed a $3,000,000 deal as part of his transfer from New Mexico to UCLA.

Early draft entrants are not steadfast in leaving college; many players are either committed to a school for next season or exploring opportunities in the transfer portal. Many of the 106 early entrants will likely withdraw before the NCAA’s May 28 deadline to retain collegiate eligibility.

Two things are certain: the average NBA draft pick will keep getting older — and the talent in college basketball will only get better.

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How Tennessee basketball coach Rick Barnes sees transfer portal, NIL

Tennessee basketball coach Rick Barnes nearly shuddered. The question posed during the Volunteers’ annual Big Orange Caravan stop in Memphis on April 29 — this year at the Memphis Botanic Garden — was hypothetical in this case. How would you handle rebuilding a roster almost from scratch, given the current climate of college athletics, where […]

Published

16 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

Tennessee basketball coach Rick Barnes nearly shuddered.

The question posed during the Volunteers’ annual Big Orange Caravan stop in Memphis on April 29 — this year at the Memphis Botanic Garden — was hypothetical in this case.

How would you handle rebuilding a roster almost from scratch, given the current climate of college athletics, where the number of players in the transfer portal tops several thousand each year, and the amount of money being paid to many of those same players is several hundred thousand dollars — in some cases, millions?

The mere thought of having to do it, especially now at the height of the NIL era and at the dawn of the revenue-sharing era — nearly gave Barnes the chills.

“I don’t know what it would feel like to have to put together a 12-man roster right now with the numbers that are being thrown around,” he said.

But it is a stark reality for many people in his position, including Penny Hardaway. The eighth-year Memphis basketball coach might have just one player (Dante Harris) back from the 2024-25 season.

Part of that depends on what All-American guard PJ Haggerty decides to do. He entered the transfer portal recently and is reportedly seeking at least $4 million to play somewhere next season. Another part of it depends on whether the NCAA will grant all-conference big man Dain Dainja’s waiver request, which was recently submitted, multiple sources told The Commercial Appeal on April 29.

If neither Haggerty nor Dainja are back, though, Hardaway would be living what Barnes desperately hopes he’ll never have to. It’s a situation he and his program work hard to avoid. He credits his coaching staff for scouting the right players, not only from an athletic standpoint, but also a personal fit.

Barnes is also a firm believer in setting and sticking to a strict standard.

“We have a limit we’ll go to,” he said in reference to how much money Tennessee basketball will spend on a player.

Most often, Barnes never has to find out what would happen if his team and a prospective Volunteers player can’t come to an agreement. But it has happened, he admits. Recently, as a matter of fact.

“It’s happened this year,” he said. “We’ve been involved with guys that truly wanted to go to the University of Tennessee, but they were looking for more money than we were able to provide.

“We know how far we’re willing to go with each prospect and that’s the cutoff. If someone else offers them more, we would say, ‘Hey, good luck. We just can’t get there.’ I’d like to think we’d never put ourselves in a desperate situation, to where we feel we have to overspend in areas that we shouldn’t.”

What Rick Barnes said about UT-Memphis basketball series

The Tigers and Vols have not met in men’s basketball since December 2020.

It was the second game of a three-game agreement. The first was played at FedExForum in 2019, while the second was in Knoxville. Tennessee won the first game, Memphis the second.

The rubber match was set for 2021 in Nashville, but it was called off prior to tip-off because of positive COVID-19 tests within the Memphis program.

Barnes has not minced words when he has said he does not plan to schedule Memphis in the foreseeable future, and he maintained that stance April 29.

“We haven’t talked about that in a couple years. It’s nowhere being talked about now,” he said. “With the changes, new teams coming into our league (the SEC) — we just came out of playing historically the hardest, best conference ever. So everything we do will be based on where we feel our league is and what we need to do.”

Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com, follow him @munzly on X, and sign up for the Memphis Basketball Insider text group.

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Kansas State basketball lands Andrej Kostic with reported $1M NIL deal

Kansas State basketball coach Jerome Tang on the end of the season Kansas State basketball coach Jerome Tang talks about his team after the season ended with a Big 12 Tournament loss to Baylor. Big 12 Conference MANHATTAN — Kansas State basketball coach Jerome Tang has passed up the transfer portal and gone overseas to […]

Published

16 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Your Sports Nation

MANHATTAN — Kansas State basketball coach Jerome Tang has passed up the transfer portal and gone overseas to land his latest recruit.

Tang, who had said he intended to go international in recruiting this cycle, delivered by picking up Andrej Kostic, a 6-foot-6 combo guard from Serbia with a reported $1 million NIL deal.

Kostic, 18, currently plays for Dynamic Balkan Bet in the Serbian professional league and leads his team in scoring with 16.4 points per game while shooting 43.2%, including 35.2% from 3-point range while making 75.7% of his free throws. He also averages 3.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists.

Kostic also helped lead the Serbian under-18 team to a silver medal in the 2024 European championship.

Kostic is the fifth player added by the Wildcats during the 2025 recruiting cycle. He joins transfer guards Nate Johnson from Akron, Abdi Bashir from Monmouth, forward Khamari McGriff from North Carolina-Wilmington, and high school recruit Exavier Wilson from Columbia, Missouri.

The Wildcats also added a mid-year transfer forward in Tyreek Smith from Memphis, but he needs a waiver from the NCAA to be eligible next season.

Tang still has work to do to fill his 2025-26 roster after losing starting forwards David N’Guessan and Coleman Hawkins to graduation, along with guards Dug McDaniel, Brendan, and CJ Jones, forwards Macaleab Rich and Baye Falle, and center Ugonna Onyenso to the transfer portal. McDaniel and Hausen both were starters.

Starting guard Max Jones also exhausted his eligibility but is seeking an extra year of eligibility after starting his career at the NCAA Division II level. The Wildcats return only three reserves — forward Taj Manning and guards David Castillo and Mobi Ikegwuruka.

The current roster is very guard-heavy with McGriff, the seldom-used Manning, and possibly Smith as the only frontcourt players. Tang still has at least three spots available, depending on the status of Jones and Smith.

Kansas State basketball roster breakdown

Outgoing transfers

Macacleab Rich, sophomore forward
Brendan Hausen, junior guard (Iowa)
Dug McDaniel, junior guard (Memphis)
Ugonna Onyenso, junior center
Baye Fall, sophomore forward (Rutgers)
CJ Jones, junior guard

Incoming transfers

Abdi Bashir, sophomore guard (Monmouth)
Khamari McGriff, junior forward (UNC-Wilmington)
Nate Johnson, junior guard (Akron)

Incoming freshmen

Exavier Wilson, guard, Columbia, Mo.

International recruits

Andrej Kostic, guard, Serbia (age 18)

Returning players

Taj Manning, sophomore forward
Mobi Ikegwuruka, sophomore guard
David Castillo, freshman guard

*Starting guard Max Jones and midyear transfer forward Tyreek Smith are seeking waivers from the NCAA for another year of eligibility

Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @arnegreen.

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